The 8th edition of the World Stadium Congress officially kicked off yesterday in Doha where representatives from over 25 countries gathered to discuss the future of sport infrastructure development, tournament delivery and legacy.
The event saw an impressive delegation of some of the famous international clubs and organising committees including FC Barcelona, Real Madrid, Titans Cricket South Africa, La Liga, Rugby World Cup, Asian Football Confederation, alongside Qatar Stars League, Qatar Football Association, Qatar Olympic Committee, Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy and many more.
The congress kicked off with a welcome speech from the host sponsor, Vodafone, followed by back-to-back keynote presentations from local and international leaders. Sheikh Hamad bin Abdullah Al Thani, Director of Enterprise Sales at Vodafone, highlighted Vodafone’s role towards building a memorable tournament in 2022 before Datuk Dell, Former Head of Police of Kuala Lumpur, and the Asian Football Confederation Match Commissioner and FIFA Security Officer, took the stage to share his experiences from AFC and FIFA on how to successfully deliver a world-class international tournament.
Eng. Thani Al Zarraa, Project Manager (Al Wakrah Stadium), Competition Venues, Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy, then guided the audience through the current progress in Qatar and illuminated the path to 2022, inspiring confidence and belief that the road to the 2022 tournament will set the tone for future tournaments.
This was followed by Commissaire Antoine Boutonnet, Chief, French Police - National Division against Hooliganism, Euro 2016, who shared insights and experiences from the highly successful Euro 2016 tournament in France that was modelled on creating a secure and safe tournament for citizens, visitors and athletes. Ali Al Khalifa, CEO, ASTAD Project Management, rounded off the morning keynote plenary affirming the role of ASTAD Project Management towards sustainability, legacy and delivery for the 2022 tournament.
The day’s proceedings included presentations from leading solutions providers including GREE, Al-Taadhod, EATON and Space Hellas MicroTech before concluding with a session on fan experience featuring Alfredo Lorenzo, Security Director for La Liga, David Storr, Head of Safety and Security at Bristol Sport, and Chris Dite, Associate Director - Sport Venue Design and Major Events at Arup.
The congress is organised by IQPC Middle East who remains committed to hosting event that supports Qatar’s national vision.
The second day of the conference is scheduled to kick off tomorrow with a ‘round-the-world tour’ and showcase of some of the major stadium projects from around the world including Russia, The Netherlands, the US, Singapore and more.
